Here I go..... first entry

I decided to keep a Blog of the things I make and sometimes I'll outline the details.  I keep occupied with crafts and cooking, in particular sewing and knitting.

Last night I finished a hand knitted sweater for myself.  Last year I was a beta tester for the Wild Stitches knitting Software by Wildginger.  I use Patternmaster Boutique, also by Wildginger for my dressmaking, so I used my measurement chart from PMB for the WS pattern.  I dislike dropped shoulder knits, so I chose to make a set in sleeve style, with a side bust dart and the contoured side seam and long sleeves.

The thing about using software for knitting patterns is that one is in charge of the whole project, you choose the yarn, the needles, the stitch pattern and the style of garment and the body measurements - no mean task really.  You also have to make decisions on the amount of ease you need according to the fabric you will subsequently knit and the style you have chosen.

 

Unlike dressmaking, when you knit a garment you are making the fabric too.  So one of the most important factors is to make a sample of the knitting you aim to use - then measure it correctly. A 4 inch square is the absolute minimum tension swatch I would recommend, and I always remove the needle from the stitches before I measure as knitting spreads off the needle.  Some yarns you might wish to steam press to change to handle of the fabric, for example some machine knitting industrial acrylic yarns, so I also do this at the tension swatch stage too.

I have lots of yarn stored away, no suitable patterns, so making my own patterns lets me use some of my stash.  For this sweater I used Pingouin Sweet'hair, which is 50% mohair, 25% wool and 25% acrylic. 150m to a 50 gr. ball.  It was knitted in stocking stitch on size 4mm needles.  Rather than ribs I chose to do a 6 row moss stitch border, then on the 7th row I twisted the left hand needle anti clockwise every 6th stitch and this puts a twist into the hem, then I continued in stocking stitch.

The sweater fits me nicely, the side bust dart and the contoured side seam add shape taking away the baggy look of an unshaped top, and the shoulder seams sit just right on my shoulders with the set in sleeves.

I now need to try to take better photographs! and find out how to put the pictures where I want them to be in the post!